Lent Day Thirty-Four

Day Thirty-Four-The Temple

When I was in seminary I had a great teacher, for the sake of this blog we will call him Doctor V. Doctor V. was a great teacher that made his students think, but yet did this with kindness and grace. One of Doctor V's favorite sayings to us students was that we enjoy our time in seminary, because it would be one of our only opportunities to: "Study in Leisure".  None of us truly understood this saying, especially since studying and due dates were all that we knew. Now that I am a full time minister, I truly understand what Doctor V, meant in being able to devote one's self to full-time deep study of God's word. In a couple weeks I will be returning to the seminary for lectures and I can't wait to be back in the campus library to study and write "in leisure"!

As we enter this day thirty-four of Lent, let us think of Jesus in the temple after his arrival in Jerusalem. Most of Christ's teaching was done outside, but in his final week of his life the teaching was done inside the temple. As we gather and study in the word, let us understand that Jesus is referred to as the "Logos", which is Greek for "Word". As we delve into God's word, let us truly understand that as we read scripture, we are reading the true word of the Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. To live the full Christian life, we need knowledge as well as religious experience. We must truly understand God's wants, needs and expectations for our lives if we are going to go out as his disciples. 

My prayer for all of this day is that we will take heed to the words of Doctor V. and find some time today and all days to study the "logos" of God in "leisure"

Thanks for letting me be your pastor.

Tim.

Day Thirty-Four Bible Readings

Matthew 21:12-14, 18, 23

Matthew 5:1-7, 29

2Kings 22:4-10

2 Kings 23:1-3

Psalm 26:1-3

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Hebrews 8:10

Philippians 4:7

Lent Day Thirty-Three

Day Thirty-Three-The Children of Lent

As a parent I remember when our sons were babies, often at night they would cry and even though Lynne or I would get up (Lynne more than I), we wished for silence so we could get back to sleep. Since both my Son's (one in college and one in high school), are older, I find myself sometimes missing those childhood sounds in the house. A while back I was listening to a recording that my wife made of our son Sean when he was just learning to talk, and I thought to myself: "As much as I love my twenty-one year old son, part of me misses that toddler voice that is now only a missed memory".

After Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, he went to the temple and began conducting miracles, while this happened the sounds of children shouting "Hosanna to the Son of David" could be heard outside. This upset the temple priests greatly and they complained to Jesus that they were interrupting a house of worship. Jesus replied: "Have you never read, Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou hast brought perfect praise'?" 

Brothers and Sisters, next time a child cries in church, or is a bit to loud, I ask that you cast a vision of a church where the sounds of children are forever silent. Churches that do not have the sounds of children, the sounds of youth are churches that are withering on the vine of healthy ministry. As a teenager, I remember attending a worship in which the parish priest chastised a family in worship for the sound of their crying child. The only thing that this priest did was remove the sound of a healthy church, and a young family from the ministry of this parish. With this picture branded on my mind, it comes into view every time I hear an infant or young child sound in worship. 

Beloved, the sound of children and youth in church is the sound of a church that is healthy and doing vibrant and relevant ministry. My prayer and wish for us all is that this Palm Sunday as we see the kids waving the palms, we embrace that picture in or memory. Next time our babies cry in the middle of the night, or when they cry in worship, I ask that you think what the sound of their silence would be like.

Thanks for your kids crying and making sounds in worship

Pastor Tim.

Day Thirty-Three Scripture Readings

Matthew 21: 14-17

Galatians 6: 9,10

Lent Day Thirty-Two

Day Thirty-Two-The Palm Sunday Donkey

When my Dad was growing up, during the depression his parents would send him to his Uncles farm for the summer.  Times were hard and the family didn’t have much, but at least on the farm three meals a day were possible and probable. Dad always told us kids that he loved these summers on Uncle Harold’s farm in Illinois, except for one thing: “The Donkey”!

Uncle Harold had a donkey that didn’t like people and if the donkey had a chance it would bite, so Uncle Harold’s advice to Dad was: “Don, stay away from the donkey”!  Well Dad took this advice, but I think the summer brought a few opportunities for Dad and the biting donkey to interact.

Unlike the donkey on Uncle Harold’s farm in Illinois, the donkey that Jesus rode on Palm Sunday was much different. Many people ask: “Why would Jesus ride a donkey, when he as a king should have ridden the most magnificent horse”?  The answer is that a horse was ridden in battle in these times, and the donkey was a sign of peace.

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he rode in not as a general to attack and wage battle, but rather he rode in as the"Prince of Peace": “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38)

Brothers and Sisters, my prayer for you this day is that you approach this day as a person that is not afraid of the donkey, or the one that rides it into Jerusalem. As we yell “Hosanna!” let us understand what it means?  Hosanna is Hebrew for “Save, we pray”! Let us approach the rider of the donkey this Palm Sunday and always in the faith and the knowledge that our prayers are heard, and through the death and resurrection of Jesus the donkey rider, we are saved.

Hosanna,

Pastor Tim.

Day Thirty-Two Scriptures

Luke 19:37, 38

John 14:27

Romans 12:18

Lent Day Thirty-One

Day Thirty-One-The Memorial Feast

As I write this day thirty-one blog I'm working on my laptop with my cell phone next to me and drinking a cup of coffee from my fabulous one cup coffee maker. I consider myself a pretty tech minded person, but often find myself lost when the newest and greatest technology comes out. As a preacher that works with young people I'm often amazed how much faster they pick up new technology, and how they adapt it to their daily lives. The only problem with technology is making sure that it doesn't consume who we are and that it doesn't take away our quality time from other things.

When the Israelite's were departing Egypt, the people were told that this day would be a day of memorial and that a feast should be observed in remembrance, and should be passed down to future generations. Prior to this in ancient times the people worship many different god's, but as the Exodus from Egypt continued, the people would learn that there was only one God (The Creator and Lover of All). 

As we go through this day, let us ask ourselves if we let anything in our lives become a god that we worship, such as our cell phones, our Facebook? We can worship thing to the extent that it takes away from our worship of the one true God. What occurs on Sunday morning that has become our god, instead of worshiping the one true God with others at church.

Brothers and Sisters, my prayer for all of this day is that we separate from things that take away from our worship of God and his Son Jesus Christ. Like anything, to much of a piece of technology of hobby can become a thing of worship. As the ancient Israelite's learned to pass the one true God down to future generations, we are called to pass down the one true God of eternal relationship to our children.

Feast Well Today, Worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit

Pastor Tim

Day Thirty-One Scripture Readings

Exodus 12: 14

Exodus 18: 1-12

Acts 19:26

Acts 17:23

Exodus 20:2

Matthew 4:10

Lent Day Thirty

Day Thirty-The Lamb of God

As we enter day thirty of Lent, Benton Kentucky has started to show initial signs of the coming of spring in the sights and fried food smells of the arrival of 2012 Tater Day. As a new pastor in the area, I have heard both good and bad stories about this annual event, the common response that I get is: "Preacher you must experience your first Tater Day to truly understand it". I also hear that this a time when the Rebel Flags come out and the citizens of Benton and Marshall County clear out of town until Tater Day officially ends. 

This day thirty of Lent we discuss the gentle creature of the lamb, that is without anger, and whose color represents purity, a beautiful creature of God's creation that does not need to be killed. In ancient church history, these beautiful creatures (ones without blemish) were sacrificed for the redemption of our guilt. Likewise God sent us the sacrificial lamb of Jesus Christ, who was pure and without blemish, to be sacrificed for our sins. Jesus came and went among God's people without fear and trepidation, because he knew his Fathers plan, Jesus knew that he was a sheep among wolves. Jesus knew that only through his being among the people (especially those that humanity rejected), could the Lamb of God truly do God's work of relationship building and "Family of God" creating.

As we enter this upcoming 2012 Tater Day, and as I experience it for the first time, do not be afraid to go among the people, and do not flee the area. Next time we see someone we do not know at Tater day, invite them to church and be a symbol of the Prince of Peace and the Lamb of God. Next time we see a carnival worker, be God's lamb and communicator of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Instead of dreading Tater Day, embrace it as God's opportunity to share his Son with the influx of people that are drawn to our community. 

See Ya In The Corn Dog and Lemon Shake-Up Line

Pastor Tim

Day Thirty Scripture

Exodus 12:5-7, 12-14

Genesis 22:1-14

Leviticus 3:6

Isaiah 53:4-7

1Peter 1:18,19

Lent Day Twenty-Nine

Day Twenty-Nine-The Passover Lamb

Since my calling to serve as a pastor in Western Kentucky, I knew that my family was originally from this area. Occasionally I will have somebody call me, e-mail me and advise me that we are related. One of the most important things in our lives is to know who we are, where we have been and to whom we belong. Every new meeting of a family member down here is like getting a fresh new piece of life. The same is said about Passover and the sacrificial lamb that helps us identify who we are, and where we have been. As finding new family members adds new life to us, Passover and Jesus the sacrificial lamb have not only added new life, but have added life eternal. 

On this Twenty-Ninth day of Lent we are called to understand the meaning of Passover and it's relationship to us that live and breath this very day. Passover is a remembrance of when the plague occurred that caused Pharaoh to release God's people from Egyptian bondage. The second Remembrance of Passover is in relationship to Joseph being one of Pharaoh's leaders, and having his family relocate to Egypt to escape famine. Over the years the Jewish numbers in Egypt increased and over time became enslaved in Egypt. With the plague causing Pharaoh to release them from bondage, the house and lineage of Jacob became a new nation. The Passover meal is a way for us to remember our history and where we came from, but more importantly to remember God's promises and to whom we truly belong. 

With the ministry of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Passover is transformed in the fact that Jesus is the Passover lamb that was sacrificed for our sins, so we would have everlasting life. Again, this time of year helps all of God's people remember who they are, and where they came from and where they are going. Brothers and Sisters be proud of your lineage, but also think of the lamb that is sacrificed for all of us. 

Made anew by being part of your family

Pastor Tim.

Day Twenty-Nine Scripture Readings

Exodus 12

Exodus 12:40

1Peter 2:10

1Corinthians 15:56,57

1Peter 2:9